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The transcriptomic responses of C 4 grasses to subambient CO 2 and low light are largely species specific and only refined by photosynthetic subtype
Author(s) -
WatsonLazowski Alexander,
Papanicolaou Alexie,
Koller Fiona,
Ghannoum Oula
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the plant journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.058
H-Index - 269
eISSN - 1365-313X
pISSN - 0960-7412
DOI - 10.1111/tpj.14583
Subject(s) - biology , transcriptome , photosynthesis , acclimatization , phenotypic plasticity , adaptation (eye) , abiotic component , crassulacean acid metabolism , botany , genetics , evolutionary biology , ecology , gene , gene expression , neuroscience
Summary Three subtypes of C 4 photosynthesis exist (NADP‐ME, NAD‐ME and PEPCK), each known to be beneficial under specific environmental conditions. However, the influence of photosynthetic subtype on transcriptomic plasticity, as well as the genes underpinning this variability, remain largely unknown. Here, we comprehensively investigate the responses of six C 4 grass species, spanning all three C 4 subtypes, to two controlled environmental stresses: low light (200 µmol m −2 sec −1 ) and glacial CO 2 (subambient; 180 ppm). We identify a susceptibility within NADP‐ME species to glacial CO 2 . Notably, although glacial CO 2 phenotypes could be tied to C 4 subtype, biochemical and transcriptomic responses to glacial CO 2 were largely species specific. Nevertheless, we were able to identify subtype specific subsets of significantly differentially expressed transcripts which link resource acquisition and allocation to NADP‐ME species susceptibility to glacial CO 2 . Here, low light phenotypes were comparable across species with no clear subtype response, while again, transcriptomic responses to low light were largely species specific. However, numerous functional similarities were noted within the transcriptomic responses to low light, suggesting these responses are functionally relatively conserved. Additionally, PEPCK species exhibited heightened regulation of transcripts related to metabolism in response to both stresses, likely tied to their C 4 metabolic pathway. These results highlight the influence that both species and subtype can have on plant responses to abiotic stress, building on our mechanistic understanding of acclimation within C 4 grasses and highlighting avenues for future crop improvements.